Though, I’m glad that I did. The morning, spent with the incredible group of entrepreneurs fostering #bigDOCC (Big “D” Open Coffee Club – Dallas that is), was focused on not just what it means to be a startup in Dallas, but Texas, and the role that industry plays therein. The afternoon, with Tech WIldcatters‘ Gabriella Draney and a handful of still-stealth eCommerce ventures, solidified that the industry of commerce is in Texas.

I talk a lot about the role of industry; the culture of an ecosystem is as great a determiner of your success as an entrepreneur (or investor), as is the culture of your startup.

Drucker, who famously said, “Culture trumps strategy,” I believe, was alluding not just to the characteristics of a business, but of the economic development of a city, a state, and a country.

The idea is hard to refute; The United States is the economic powerhouse that it is because of a culture of innovation, entrepreneurs, and the “can do” attitude that makes it so distinct. While we entertain startup strategies such as being lean or agile, it’s impossible to ignore that, for example, LA has a culture of entertainment, Nashville that of music, New York, a culture of finance and fashion, and Silicon Valley, indeed, a culture of disruptive innovation. Such cultures, those industries, are what drives investment, talent, and success to those locations, as the entire ecosystem is designed to foster growth therein that very culture.

And leading provider of end-to-end merchandising optimization, Revionics, just moved here!

And, while granted, I’m no Shawn Collins, founder of the Affiliate Summit, within a matter of months of his moving here (so, yes, add eCommerce’s affiliate industry to the list), I left my own history with Yahoo! Shopping, hpshopping, and eBay to call Austin home. The industry of eCommerce is in Austin, TX.

This foundation, eCommerce, which is not eTail if you will (the likes on which Dell was established – truly transacting online rather than the infrastructure, technology, and webs services to drive such commerce), but eCommerce, will drive the entirety of the consumer web to follow.

Texas and eTail

It’s as subtle, yet important, as the distinction between “social marketing” and “social media.” eCommerce is the foundation of eTail which is where Retail bleeds online; and that’s not the tip of the iceberg but what lies beneath the water when it comes to the consumer internet.

In my mind, having spent years working with Yahoo Shopping and hpshopping before launching several commerce ventures as a CMO and advisor, Austin is the home of eCommerce. The talent, technology, investment, and entrepreneurs who want to build the future of commerce online, will come to and from Austin.

Josh Baer, Austin angel investor and founder of Capital Factory, has put a stake in the ground, having supported dozens of consumer internet startups.

“More Consumer Internet investors are coming. Every week people move to Austin from Silicon Valley, New York City and other locations where there have been many Consumer Internet successes,” Baer asserts. “They will be more open to consumer businesses than our traditional B2B base. DreamIt Ventures and Techstars Austin both had a significant percentage of Consumer Internet startups in their recent batches.”

Granted, Comparison Shopping, the industry in which Tuffwerx, Equipboard, and Bidaway arguably exist, is spreadout throughout the country as though a shotgun blasted entrepreneurs at a map of the United States – and yes, the same can be said of deal sites which continue to pop up as fast as someone can put up a website. But Baer’s reference to “consumer internet,” is validated through this foundation of the consumer internet: eCommerce is here.

What’s incredible about Austin’s role in eCommerce is that the combined economic significance of the cities within 3 hours of Austin, Texas, comprises the bulk of the retail industry and as such, eTail, the next layer of the consumer internet.

I can think of few arguments to refute this… eBay, Amazon (granted)… Minneapolis with Best Buy and Target… Bentonville, Arkansas and Walmart?

Given the significance of the Texas economy and the strength of the Texas Triangle (Dallas, Houston, and Austin), as well as the corridor (San Antonio, Austin, Dallas), Texas is home to a staggering roster of direct to consumer brands:

Golfsmith

Calendars.com

JC Penney

Southwest, Continental, and American Airlines

Gamestop

RadioShack

Fossil

Michaels

Mary Kay

Men’s Warehouse

The Container Store

Pier 1 Imports

Whole Foods Market

Zale Corporation

Conn’s

Dell

And that’s not counting indirect consumer brands such as AT&T, Dean Foods, Kimberly-Clark and the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Bordon Milk Products, Frito-Lay, Haggar Clothing, Rolex, Brach’s, and Dickies… No, by no means all of the major brands and yet their support, their innovation, on top of the eCommerce infrastructure, simply adds layers to the cake.

And the icing on the cake? Addison, Texas is home of The open source eCommerce framework Broadleaf. Move Square or Paypal to Texas and the entire commerce stack will be in the Lone Star State… wait, isn’t that what Visa is doing here?

Larrisa Faw and I, in Forbes last year, discussed the fact that as those loosely distinct, yet related, industries support one another, as major brands, retailers, and eCommerce providers, work together, industries excel. The consumer web will continue to blend into one through the foundation in eCommerce in Austin, and Texas is where the global economy will turn for commerce.

The other beauty of Texas (overall) and each city/metro area (individually) is the immense opportunity to develop businesses (be it B2B or B2C) and have a ready base for local customer development. In DFW, there are over 8MM people and more than 10 Fortune 500 companies. That microcosm is a seed base for much greater expansion over time.

Precisely this Kevin. The distinction about Silicon Valley, and the reality about the NE (Boston, NY, Phila, etc.) that few ever talk about, when fully considering why things work well there, is that it’s one big economy comprised of many cities. As Texas truly comes together as one, imagine the possibilities.

Hey, I’m on board with Slewpon.com
Funny story; I can remember Groupon reached the Austin market (me) in 2010, and at that time it was just a “daily” deal. Just one deal per day. I immediately recognized it as a revolution in the industry and I said to my family at the dinner table “we need to do this with multiple deals! why in the world have they limited this to one deal!! omg! lets do this! we’ll give people a whole slew of group coupons! we’ll call it Slewpon.com!!”

I bought the domain, struggled to connect with a developer, and exactly 8 months later, groupon started rolling out multiple deals per day, and now it is what it is today… a lifestyle. A revolution in it’s industry, no doubt.

Well, I’ve hung on to it, so if you’d like to do this; I’m on board!
Slewpon.com ” a whole slew of coupons and daily deals”

and hey, if the aggregation isn’t enough of a business model, here’s just one lil idea to scale to…

Imagine a world where people open our app anytime they think of something they want to buy, and they add it to their wishlist. Then, anytime they get within a certain radius of that product, it pushes a notification to them, hopefully on sale. And, anytime a coupon/daily deal of that product surfaces, a notification is pushed to them with a link to it.
They can take it off their wishlist anytime they want, and wallah, no more push notifications of that product…

Hi Paul – Don’t forget that the e-business payment plan innovator UpgradeUSA is based here too! We just closed our second year, we’re profitable, and we have some big plans coming in 2014! Stay tuned for more!

Austin is eCommerce perhaps, and yes, one must ask about the other factors that make, and have made, this possible.

Last night I was sitting in Cover 3 with a gf and she lamented on how she hated Gov. Perry for cutting her state budget annually. Gov. Perry has lured many of these businesses in at a discount to them. Of course, for the small fries like me, our businesses do not get a direct boost, but he still builds the larger infrastructure, which makes the tech pie bigger for all of us, so he is to be commended.

As for Austin and what it’s known for, and perhaps this is a lofty goal of which myself and only Kevin Koym aspire, we should never forget that Austin is famous for its inclusivity and community of sharing. We help each other get started and we do so freely.

In private conversations, you have disagreed. To that I would have to say that perhaps you are correct in some cases when ongoing business happens, but to get started, I would have to argue that Austin has more opportunities, compared to other cities. New start-ups can begin their businesses, while spending little money, simply by getting connected to the abundance that is already here.

Am I naïve? Perhaps. I prefer to say that I surround myself with those who share my beliefs and make it a point to help others whenever I can. Of course, you are more connected than I, so you see behaviors that are perhaps….suspect.

Perry’s approach is a dual edged sword with benefits and disadvantages. Does it give other businesses moving here a break? Yes. Does that disadvantage other businesses? Yes. But do most of those businesses that move here bring high level jobs and professionals or entry level jobs? They are primarily account managers, support staff, etc. so… is the arrival of those businesses here really helping?? Are we getting more engineers and executives? No. So in the long term, are local businesses really hurt by not getting the same advantage? You said it yourself, he is making the pie bigger and a bigger pie means more capital, customers, partners, etc…. the benefit is a short term perk in that the best businesses/business owners, will eventually win out and IF indeed they are the best, they’ll benefit far more by way of that larger pie. No? Think even bigger though… those relocations foster PR about Texas, commerce, relocation of talented professionals who want to live where it’s happening, etc. All good, no? Is it though? If those companies are moving primarily low level jobs, when the economy goes south, they are the first to go, those companies will pack up and out of Texas, leaving countless unemployed in their wake. Unless we, the businesses already here, step up and demand better, together.

Yes, Austin is supportive, shares, and is inclusive, it’s ALSO more exclusive (there was a wonderful discussion over dinner just the other night with some investors about how no where else in the country have they had to pay to have access to a startup pitch event – only here), less sharing (a running gag in the startup community among those of us from Silicon Valley is that we have to sign NDAs here… NDAs went the way of the dodo, a decade ago in California where people REALLY appreciate that the only way to grow/excel is to share your ideas), and it’s supportive of businesses, not true collaboration which fosters industry, competition, and economic growth more than the success of a business.

In fairness, my perspective isn’t critical. I’m here for a reason and you’re right, Austin has more opportunity – you can start a business here with far less capital and the easy access to a few connections in Austin. My goal, in questioning things, is that very goal that Perry has… to grow the pie, not just the success of A business. Not just to support, but to collaborate so that everyone benefits. And to help entrepreneurs realize that an inclusive economy is one in which they are welcome everywhere, not just where they get in, are accepted, or pay for access.

“Shallow;” interesting choice of words Jeff. I never claimed to write to the expectations of the audience here. I’ve made a provocative and somewhat founded claim. You could certainly argue that other elements of online shopping go to other communities: Chicago, Minneapolis, Silicon Valley (e-tail without question goes to another city), but when many of the leading commerce solutions (Offers.com, RetailMeNot, BigCommerce, Volusion, Revionics, Bazaarvoice) are in Austin, what more data need one provide to support that claim? By what measure is the claim agreed to be accurate? Jobs? Investor returns? Number of entrepreneurs per capita or in total?

Others’ Thoughts

Paul is hands down one of the best people to work with in the startup ecosystem in Austin, TX.

Ben JenkinsFounder & CEODone.comAustin, TX

Hit the ground running and has been a great contributor to the polishing of our business. His expert knowledge of SEO, strategy and marketing will enable VChain Solutions to gain even more traction than we are currently experiencing.

James VinsonFounder & CEOVChain SolutionsAustin, TX

Easily one of my favorite people in tech. Passionate, knowledgeable, connector and tenacious are the words that come to mind if I were to label him. Paul’s a constant hustler (in a good way) who always has time to talk about anything related to technology, marketing and all things startup related. He’s a great person to have on your team and an even better person to just simply know.

Marc MapesFounder & Head of ProducteiTalentAustin, TX

Providing Marketing and Strategy through the Clean Tech Open accelerator, Paul was readily available for a helping hand and opened his extensive network to us helping us connect with thought leaders in our industry. I would recommend Paul as a mentor and definitely use him again.

Bar BruhisCo-founderVChain SolutionsAustin, TX

Paul provided a much more comprehensive strategy to our marketing and branding. He’s an expert in his field and knows how to deliver results. He took the time to understand our business and forge a multi-faceted approach to marketing our brand. We continue to leverage Paul’s talents and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him.

Erik DreyerFounderTuffwerxAustin, TX

Paul is a true Go-Giver! His willingness to share his expertise in Digital Marketing is priceless. I highly recommend anyone who is starting a company or who is starting to invest in marketing read his Startups articles on his website and then make sure you meet with him. I only wish I had met Paul earlier when I first started my company.

David DoranCEOTexas Systems GroupAustin, TX

In the startup world, everything is rough waters. Paul came to us a couple years ago when he found out what we were building. He believed in our idea and wanted us to achieve our goals. In the past two years I’ve known Paul, he has always been there to mentor and guide me through the rough waters he’s seen through having once been our shoes. His advice is rock solid, practical and most importantly – executable. As an individual, he holds to his word, he’s dedicated and he’s one of the few wh…

Nik DaftaryEntrepreneurDaftasanaSan Francisco, CA

Paul has been an advisor on numerous initiatives over the years. His knowledge and experience in all the aspects of digital marketing and media product strategy is matched with a creativity unique in the industry. Time spent “talking shop” with Paul has effectively become the foundation for my understanding of how digital marketing works and how to navigate an increasingly.

David GehringVP PartnershipsGuardian NewsSan Francisco, CA

Paul has been an invaluable adviser to our start-up. His experience in the events space as well as his knowledge of today’s marketing stack has taken us a long ways from what we started with. His honest assessment of both our company and the Austin start-up scene has proven to be immensely helpful in guiding our strategy and direction.

Michael WeiSolutions ArchitectOptimizelyAustin, TX

Paul has the great ability to juggle 8 balls at once and is a jack of all trades. He is not only helpful on everything related to press, PR, marketing and social media, but has also added value by providing strategic direction/advice and even gets his hands dirty with technical development. He can be relied upon as a trusted partner and project manager.

What's incredible about Austin's role in eCommerce is that the combined economic significance of the cities within 3 hours of Austin, Texas, comprises the bulk of the retail industry and as such, eTail, the next layer of the consumer internet.